Genius Piano Kids

Abhik Mazumder is a 16 year old (2018) pianist from Columbus, Ohio. He also plays the violin at a competitive level. On piano, he is formally trained in both classical and jazz styles, and has won first and second prizes at numerous state, national, and international competitions. Notable ones include the Bradshaw and Buono International piano competition, the AADGT competition, the United States Virtuoso International Piano competition, Buckeye auditions, OMTA Graves competition, and MTNA competition (state level). He is the recipient of the 2016 Hank Marr Jazz Award , and the 2017 winner of the New Albany Symphony Orchestra and the Columbus Symphony Orchestra's concerto competitions. In 2018, he won the Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra's Frieda Schumacher concerto competition. Abhik is the pianist of the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Steinway Hall, Lincoln Center, Haus der Mozart (Vienna), and Mozarthaus (Vienna), among other notable venues.

Six-year old pianist Abhik Mazumder, who will perform today in a recital hall at the famed New York venue.

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He likes sushi, formalwear and Chopin. He's cool under pressure. And, today, he is playing
Carnegie Hall.

"The only thing that limits Abhik is the size of his hands," his piano teacher said.

Well, that's to be expected: He's still in kindergarten.

In regard to music, Abhik Mazumder, 6, of Upper Arlington seems to personify the word
precocious. By virtue of being a winner in a national piano competition, he gets
to perform today at Carnegie Hall in New York.

Granted, it's in a recital hall -- not the auditorium where Vladimir Horowitz and Arthur
Rubinstein played. But give him time.

"He's what you'd call a prodigy," said his teacher, Don Clark of Plain City.

Clark, who has taught for about 35 years, referred to Abhik as the most advanced student of his
age he has ever had.

In person, Abhik is a blend of little boy and musician. Before tackling the four-minute
Waltz in C-sharp Minor by Chopin (his favorite composer), he takes a deep breath
and holds his hands poised above the keys.

And when it's finished, he does dinosaur impressions.

Asked whether his friends at Tremont Elementary School know about his piano-playing prowess, he
replied, "Yes, but they don't understand."

Abhik is the son of Sandip Mazumder and his wife, Srirupa. Natives of India, they arrived in the
United States in the early 1990s and have lived in Upper Arlington for four years. Mr. Mazumder is
an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State University. Mrs. Mazumder stays home
to take care of Abhik.

"He's very energetic," she said.

He began pouring that energy into music before he could talk, she said. He would sing along with
melodies, using whatever baby syllables he had at his command.

By 3, he had picked up his father's taste for the blues, listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan and
Eric Clapton.

He wanted to play the guitar, like his father, but his hands were too small. So, at 4, he
started piano lessons, using extenders to reach the pedals. It quickly became apparent that he had
perfect pitch (he could identify notes and chords just from the sounds of them).

"Within two months of starting lessons, he had figured out all the major and minor chords and
their inversions," Mr. Mazumder said.

The Carnegie Hall gig is the result of Abhik's being named one of seven winners in the
elementary division of the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition (
www.bbpiano.com). The division had more than 100 entrants, who
were selected by recordings they mailed to the judges, said Barry Alexander, executive
director.

Abhik enjoys putting on a coat and tie for recitals and never shows signs of nervousness, Mr.
Mazumder said. When the boy isn't playing piano, he likes to draw, swim and eat. (His favorite
foods include sushi and Chinese dishes.)

He's also a quick study at math.

When Clark told him he might have to practice four to six hours a day to get really good, Abhik
replied: "Well, you know I have to go to school, and I've got my friends, so the most I can do is
two hours."

Clark envisions Abhik conducting an orchestra someday. But the boy already has his future mapped
out.